LOCH GARTEN JUNE 2023

What a lovely sight again.  Scylla, I don't remember Asha allowing Axel anywhere near the chicks last year, and so far it's no different this, which is a shame, and he is clearly interested.

It was indeed a lovely large headless trout that Brodie brought in.

Asha was up and waiting when he landed.  Brodie was really interested in what was going on

After feeding the wee one Asha moved closer to the rim to eat the fish herself.  Brodie slowly moved towards the cup, but not into it, and then thought better of it.  He stopped to clean his beak and while Asha was still feeding herself he flew off

14.13

14,15 he flies off

and is later seen on a perch, preening

15.53

16.21 she was up to feed herself again.  She moved the fish from the cup towards the back, took a few bites and walked it to the back right for more food.

16.28 she took of for a comfort/exercise flight and returned within the minute.  Something caught her eye before she carefully stepped into the cup , another look around.  What's out there Asha?  Then she settled.  But didn't.  What I assumed was a piece of forgotten fish skin caught her eye!  Was this the remains of #1 fish or even older?

She was pulling at it as she sat in the cup

It required a lot of pulling and tugging!

and now she settles, but finds sticks under her that need moving, then sticks near her she doesn't like.  A real fidgety gibbet really!

Wot you looking at, eh?

A lovely scene of domesticity just now. Asha is incubating/brooding. Brodie is on the rim looking to the south, keeping an eye on something below and around. Asha calls and calls,  Brodie looks over his shoulder as tho taking it all in. So sweet!

Edit.  Another check slightly  earlier

22,07 Brodie landed with a LARGE FISH, not a brown trout though. Asha didn't  call much before he arrived, took the fish and lay down over her charges beside the fish!!!

Asha called and called. It can't  have been that she is hungry. Again, I think she wanted him gone, so not such a scene  of domesticity after all

22.15 Brodie left. Asha was quiet 

So there is food for the night feeds and possibly left over for breakfish.

My guide to hatching osprey eggs  

Osprey Egg Hatching

Taken from the group  Ospreys (Pandion Haliaetus)

As we are now approaching the osprey egg hatching season I would like to say something about how osprey eggs hatch.

Very often it is stated that osprey eggs hatch on average from  33 to 42 days. While this is true it leads to much confusion as it hides the fact that osprey eggs all behave differently.

The first egg in a clutch is the biggest and usually takes longest to hatch. One does not expect the first egg to hatch before 37 days.

However  ospreys are individuals and one does get exceptions. For example EJ at Loch Garten  whose first  eggs usually hatch on 36 days.

Now the second egg is smaller and usually hatches on 36 days which of course is 39 days after the first egg is laid.

The third egg hatches on 35 days which of course is 41 days after the first egg is laid.

Should there be a fourth egg it hatches on 35 or even 34 days which is 42 or 43 days after the first egg is laid.

These are starting points and various things can change the hatching date. For example if a egg is badly chilled it can delay the hatching date, so much so that at Dyfi in 2011 the second egg hatched before the first.

There is one example of the first egg in a clutch hatching on 34 days and that is EJ’s second clutch at Loch Garten in 2007. However the chick was weak and died within a day.

There was an interesting happening at Calgary Zoo in 2014 when all three chicks in a brood hatched on the same day.

The eggs were laid Thursday, May 1, 2014,  Saturday, May 3, 2014  and  Wednesday,  May 7 , 2014  

So nothing strange about that except egg #2 seems to have been laid a bit early.

There was 10 inches of snow on Saturday,  May 3 ,  2014  and there was doubt that the first two would hatch.

All three did hatch on Wednesday June 11,  2014

So egg #1 hatched on 41 days, egg #2 on 39 days and egg #3 on 35 days

So the hatching of the first two eggs was slowed by chilling.

Osprey egg data for a lot of osprey centres

Data on laying to hatching

Thank you for all the Osprey egg info and data, TIGER.  I'm sticking with my gut feeling that #1 was a hormonal egg (or suffered from the combo of Brodie's newness, BlueNN2's intrusions, and vile weather), #2 hatched a couple of days ago, and #3 may or may not hatch (see below).  As you are well aware, Tiger, I am not intellectually gifted in the bigger picture dept, but I'm sticking my neck out here.)

SheilaFE said:

So there is food for the night feeds and possibly left over for breakfish

I think there would have been a bit left for breakfish even without the 3rd fish, but now we're really motoring

FISH #3 with preamble and postamble:

Re possible 2nd hatch - Asha was digging and pecking up bits in the nestcup but no sign of eggshell could be seen.  I'm not optimistic about another hatch but would welcome watching a single spoilt sprat being raised by this lovely couple.

She's quite tired, she was nodding off when a sudden twitch of a stick prompted a wing-slap from her, just like we remember EJ doing - but that was vs the pesky Pine Marten - this was probably something very insignificant.

(Sound not synced )

With my pontifications and predictions, I've done everything I can to guarantee another hatch very soon !!!

Fabulous fish at 06.23.

(c) RSPB Loch Garten

Morning, one and all. I don't have time ATM to catch up properly or report, but thank you Scylla for your rpts and vids, and Korky's report of yet another fish delivery. Brodie really has raised his game now, and I think is keen to help, if only Asha would let him.
How lovely to see you Tiger with all the super data. Thank you. I will catch up properly later.
Brodie is sitting on Odin's perch.

It looks to me as if that was egg #3 hatching on 35 days.

Single sprats can grow up to been great ospreys. Look at Blue 33. His mother had to seek help to feed him. 

This is from the 5th when we were scraping the barrel for sightings of the osplet, I'm not sure if any of it has already been posted:

.

06 Morning get-go - dear Brodie brought a lovely fish which was surplus to requirements for quite some time; Asha is still bringing sticks; Osplet is getting lots of little feeds, which I haven't included any of.

Alternative view of 06:23 fish:

Our Osplet has 4 dots on the back of its head - I tried to find the Scottish Gaelic version of Dai Dot (but 4 not 2) and I did, in fact, but it's not friendly.

I think there have been intrusions but am not delving into that - currently a feed is going on and the little head is bobbling up over the sticks on the PTZ.

I'm off for a while.